On the Tip of My Tongue
by dymondbolt
Alton was thinking of surprises. He was back at the house he and his two roommates were renting a full three weeks earlier than planned. Surprise for Bernie and Zeke, since they were given to understand that he would be working at his parents Hardware Store right up to when classes started in the fall. Surprise for Al's eighteen year old brother, Bert, when he discovered there were only three bedrooms in the house Al and the guys were renting and Bert would be required to stay in the Dorms for Freshman year. Big surprise for Al's Parents when said younger brother pitched a fit and revealed that Big Brother Al was gay along with his room mates. Enormous surprise for Al that his "little" brother not only hacked into his laptop, but was able to with such ease, while leaving no trace as he copied some very private emails.
Surprise's all around. He probably would have been able to get that "Mom Dad, I'm gay" speech formulated and delivered in a loving and less shocking manner if little brother hadn't used such extreme visual aids from Al's private intimate photo files of he and two of his ex-lovers. Bert was immune to the logic that Al and his roommates were not and probably would never be lovers; thus the bedrooms would always remain one to a customer. Al wasn't surprised that his parents felt a need to verify that Al was always safe when he had sex with "Those Boys". Luckily the little traitor's photo line up clearly showed Al's rather large member sheathed in the proper Spermicidal coated condom, as he struggled with the Mystery Photographer/Fuck Buddy. And the struggle also gained a perfect image of said MysteryP/FB's lower half with equally large member in similar protection. The only bright ray of humor that flitted across Al's mind when they got to the end of Bert's Slideshow of Horrors, was the fact that those members were not inserted as much as they were rammed home till one and all were satisfied. Thank God the photos did not impart that nuance to newly educated Parents.
With the manner that all the private information was imparted, it was not a surprise for Al, that his parents were in a bit of shock and unsure how to proceed. Their unconditional Love for Al was reaffirmed, but in such a hesitant manner that he felt they needed a bit of time to get their heads around it. And without Al there to give them a slow moving target for those agonizing questions that Parents seem to need to fire off at their beloved non-heterosexual offspring. The truly big surprise came when Bert's attempt to manipulate Big Brother and Parents backfired; and left the younger sibling scrambling for reasons why he needed to violate the older siblings privacy in a selfish attempt at Non-Dorm Housing.
That was when the Parents had a surprise for Al. His loving parents planned on letting the assistant Manager at the Hardware Store run the place for a good three months as they went on their second Honeymoon. Al's estimated arrival into the family (a little over 21 years ago) had caused a change in location for their honeymoon. Maui turned into the Hawaiian Arms Hotel, Lake Tahoe. Luckily, through the intervening years, Al's Father had followed his CPA ( and best Frat Brother) 's advice with investments and was able to send both offspring to Alta Verde University without going into debt.
This turn of events was the real reason Al's flakey little brother had delivered his sexual orientation up to his parents. The family dog, Behemoth, was a Wolfhound/Great Dane mix and greatly favored by Bert. Mom and Dad were not taking the mutt with them on their rediscovery of their marriage. And so the rents decided that with Bert off to the Dorms for nine months, as well as their departure lasting three, Behemoth would be happier with the assistant Manager and his six loud hyperactive kids. Bert reasoned that if those kids annoyed him then they would annoy his faithful overgrown canine, too. Thus he had to have a yard for the big overgrown puppy to stay with him while at college.
Al reminded himself that this was the brother that enjoyed sticking his arm length rubber gloved hand into the manure end of a cow. Or tried valiantly to raise an orphaned raccoon; till the animal regulation people saved him from being clawed up, by taking the little bit of furry hell to the qualified wild animal caretakers. (They had the proper safety equipment, and very thick leather gloves).
Al's question stunned Bert as he left for college three weeks early. "Bert, why didn't you just ask me to take care of the dog? You didn't have to live there for Big Mouth..."
"Behemoth!"
"For Behemoth to be happy. And as it turns out, that's what Mom and Dad just asked me to do. So I'll break the news to my Dog friendly gay... housemates... that we will be having a big old happy dog the size of a large shetland pony as out backyard security system and part time house guest. I'll get Zeke to put together a triple size dog house for when you and the rents bring your stuff and canine. The way Zeke builds things, I'm thinking that Mom and Dad will reconsider the Dorm and let you live in the dog house."
Al was not prepared for Bert's Python strength bear hug. "I'm sorry I screwed up so bad, Al. It wasn't just Behemoth I was worried about."
One more surprise for Al. "Please tell me that isn't an enormous erection you've just jabbed at me?"
"I've been missing my big brother for the past two years. I didn't have you to turn to for advice. So this last semester I became real popular.. with two thirds of the Senior Students. Boys and Girls.... And the assistant coaches."
"Coaches?!"
"Mr Tibers, the assistant Mens Football/Wrestling coach, and Ms Lisa Varley, the Women's Volleyball coach."
All through Bert's revelation, Al had felt his brother's dong get firmer and poke lower. A huge phallus shaped light bulb lit up above Al's head. Bert was as hormonally impaired as Al had been just a few short years ago. Truth to tell, Al still struggled with a form of bipolar disease. But for the Morgan Clan the two "Poles" were the brains in their heads and the brains in their cocks. Realizing this affliction was shared with his brother, gave Al the strength to forgive Bert. After slapping him on the side of the head. The frown on Bert's face didn't prevent Al from sincerely warning his brother.
"That overgrown puppy of yours had better have had a rubber on it ever single time you let him play with others. And you have got to start telling it what I told mine when I went off to college and hog wild."
"What did you tell your hair trigger, overgrown, man meat and his large loud gonadal buddies?"
Al directed his advice in the direction of the body parts that needed it the most. "You guys have really good ideas, but if you don't let me do the walking and talking with the brain up here, you're gonna get us so screwed up, they'll take my head off at the neck and your big buddies will never get your head into another piece of ass."
And the final surprise for Al was feeling Bert's erection deflate to half mast. Glory be, he had gotten through to his little brother. Or frightened him with the image of decapitation which was taken up by his dick which would make any guy go soft. But hey!. Same result.
~~~~~
All of this went through Al's head as he walked into the kitchen of his usually spotless house. Bernie was real anal and ended up doing two thirds the cleaning. Zeke was a surfer to the core, yet was able to be conditioned to recycling when reminded how the ocean gets so grungy after a rain washes all that crap through the storm drains to the sea.
Al had his fill of surprises. So when he found pizza boxes piled on the table and bits of food on the floor, he thought Zeke had invited some buds over for a party and Bernie hadn't gotten to it yet. Al just happened to look up above the fridge and saw a large oval dent, that reached a good six inches through the ceiling. Like someone had rammed a football helmut (Probably with athlete attached) straight up into the ceiling after getting something from the fridge.
"Zeke is gonna have to get that fixed before landlord Morrey sees that."
Al noticed the door jambs from the kitchen through the house to the bedrooms all had the paint scrapped off the sides. And all at the same level. About five foot four to about six foot eight. Did the guys get new furniture and move it in while totally plastered?
"Hey Guys!? Anybody home?" Not a sound. Not a snore! So Zeke was not home and asleep.
Al got his stuff into his room after about four trips to his truck. Then he decided to take a break and a dump. The bathroom was a mess. And it stank of excessive sex. Then when Al sat on the toilet, the seat nearly fell off as the whole thing wobbled. "How the hell could drunk surfers loosen the toilet from the floor?"
None of Zeke's surfing buddies were particularly large. Certainly none over two hundred pounds! After Al finished and flushed, he found the plastic hinges on the seat were crushed. Like someone sat an engine block on the thing. Not an action Al would exclude from something Zeke would do. But this was the upstairs bathroom and Zeke wasn't that strong. Downstairs bath, maybe. With help. Nah!
Al decided to check the handy work schedule for the three amigos. Bernie was at the library and Zeke was at his sisters watching her kids. It looked like Bernie was closer. What had the little burly devil been up to? Bernie was a hefty 210 of muscle slapped on a five foot five inch frame. He had worked hard for that Short Conan the Librarian look. So he never had turned his moderate amount of strength against his living space.
"I hope he hasn't fallen for one of those over pumped wrestlers. If they don't care what they do to the walls, they might hurt my stubby room hunk."
Al got to Alta Verde University in about ten minutes and took another ten finding a parking place near the library. As Al got near the Library entrance he saw the faculty parking lot left of the building and Bernie's trusty Scooter. Then Al did a double take. Pour Bernie's Scooter was dragging close to the asphalt with the handle bars mangled down to a much lower angle. Like someone jumped on the poor thing about fifty times. That really got Al worried for his friend's safety.
Al got in and noticed the front desk was empty. The whole place was practically empty. Then he saw this huge wide form of a man back in the private stacks. That was Bernie's pride and joy. Mrs Bascome and Professor Largesse had Bernie in charge of that area for his doctorate. Surely they wouldn't have given it to someone else?
The form got more distinct as the massive gorilla of a man squeezed through the ornate gate and locked it behind him. While the giant was big enough to hide three of Bernie behind him, Al could see that he was by himself. Where was Bernie?
The guy had to be over seven and a half feet tall! As he cleared the five foot tall re-file shelves he could finally walk straight ahead instead of with his shoulders in the direction he walked.
Al was still full of righteous indignation over the apparently shabby manner in which his friend was being treated. But when Al saw the three foot wide shoulders on the behemoth, his second head started suggesting a nicer way of talking to the Uber-hunk.
"Not to be rude and talk out loud in the library, but I'm looking for my friend who usually is the big guy (Way Big Guy) in charge of the private stack (Boy and then some!). And since he is one of only three people who have a key to that place you just (Barely squeezed) came out of, I was wondering just where.... My.... Short...Hunk... of... a.... aa...!!!??"
AL had lost momentum when he recognized the much expanded, but still identifiable, face of Bernie on the Massive Muscle Hunk, that was grinning across the check-out desk at him. The Uber Bernie stood a bit taller, raised both arms and flexed them so hard that his sleeves split as they tried to roll up to his shoulders.
"Wow!" Came out of Al like he was loosing his voice.
Bernie's voice was at least an octave and a half lower than it had been before. "Hi Al. You're back early." Then he dropped his arms and rolled his massive pecs. Bernie's smile could not have gotten wider.
Al's 'deer-in-the-headlights' look was fading. "Well I guess you're not getting hurt by some big guy. Now I know what happened to the house."
A look of concern flickered across Bernie's face. "You were worried I'd brought some creep home, and he messed the place up?"
"And you along with it." The dull look gave way to a goofy happy grin on Al's face. "But it was only your gigantic ginormous self trying to get from the bedroom to the kitchen. Hungry were you?"
"Aww. You were more worried about me than the house, weren't you?" Bernie stepped around the desk and enveloped Al in one of the best hugs he ever had up till then.
"Yeah, ya big wall of meat. And your poor little put-put has seen better days. That really got me thinking you had a huge rugby player and his squad jumping aboard for a ride all over town."
Bernie's voice rumbled around three sides of Al after he let out a throaty giggle. "So you were gonna take on this giant that hurt your friend, risking life and squashment in the process?" Al just nodded against the twin thick overhanging shelves of pectoral muscle. Then he took a deep breath. Yep, still Bernie. Just thicker scent to go with the much thicker bod.
Bernie pulled Al away from his body so he could make eye contact. His bigger head and longer wider neck had to tip out over the pec shelf to shine his huge smile at Al. "All for Little Me?" That got a soft chuckle out of Al.
"Yep. All for little.. huh! Buddy there wasn't much anyone could ever call little on you before. At least in my opinion. Now you be makin the huge players seem a bit small. Has anyone on your rugby squad seen you yet? They are gonna nut up, big time. And that includes the really really straight guys too."
Bernie just looked at Al with a twinkle in his eye and a few things on the tip of his tongue ready to say to Al. Instead he inhaled till his chest was a foot wider and then let it all out.
Al chuckled and his smile got bigger. "Hell buddy. Just watching you breath is giving me a humungous erection in honor of your new ginormous body."
Bernie let Al go and his right hand went to the top of his head. Yep, still the same great guy. He could still have his shy moments. The head hold thing was one of Bernie's little actions that replaced blushing. But now it caused his massive biceps to swell up and resemble a bowling ball.
"Ya know Al, you always knew what to say to make me feel good about myself. A lot of the time spent in the gym went along with me remembering some of the things you said to me. Simple little compliments. But every word was sincere." He reached a huge meaty paw out and placed it across most of Al's chest. "And I always knew they were from your heart to mine. I gained forty five pounds in the past two years because I heard you tell me you believed in me. I got stronger because you knew I could."
Al wedged his fist between Bernie's pecs and pushed. He knew he couldn't move his friend an inch but the pressure let Bernie know he meant what he said. "I saw the truth in you and just reminded you. You knew you could do anything you wanted to do." Al's fist got squeezed for a moment and then he let his fingertips trace the edge of where Bernie's pectorals met his ribcage. He reached the huge downward pointed nipple as it grazed his palm near his wrist. "Jeez Bernie. Your pecs have to be at least five inches thick." Al's mischievous grin spread out as he measured Bernie's Uber nipple through his shirt.
Cocky as ever, Al beamed up at Bernie. "That my friend is more than a mouthful and it's just your nipple. Where can we go, so you can tell me how this happened?"
A low sexy female voice broke the moment. "I'd suggest the private stack for revelations of the massive kind. And it just so happens that it is young Mr Russo's break for dinner. Take two hours today, my dear. As Ricky Ricardo warned his wonderful wacky wife... you got some splaining to do." Mrs Bascome had her angelic smile in place as she sat behind the check out desk.
"Thanks, Mrs B. I'll keep the snogging to a minimum."
"Mr. Russo!" Her face went from angry to Mona Lisa in seconds. "That would seriously disappoint me."
"Understood, Mrs. B."
Al paused for a moment as Bernie headed to the Private Stack gate. Al thought "As awesome leaving as arriving."
A bass chuckle bounced off of the flat surfaces in the library. "Don't just stand there. You could be pushing that meaty butt you're perving on."
Al took good advice when offered and scuttled to just in back of the massive librarian. He put his hand on the curve between Bernie's Glutes and his lower back. The last ten feet to the gate were an anatomy lesson for Al.
Bernie unlocked the gate and did a sidle squeeze through and he continued in the same fashion till an open space occurred near the middle of the Private Stack. Al pulled the gate closed and followed with less scraping as he went.
Bernie turned and pulled a pillow from the top of one shelf. he tossed it to Al and found an old cushion for a chair in the same place. He tossed it on the other side of the ornate ten foot diameter Medallion formed of exotic hardwoods that was part of the parquet floor. Bernie pulled a large wooden chest from the same stack but the bottom shelf. It was three feet wide and thirty inches tall and about the same deep. Shaped like a steamer trunk, it had the same kind of metal hinges and brass protective pieces for the edges of the chest. The lid had a stylized Monogram very similar to the kind of work that created the Medallion on the floor. In fact it had the same kinds of woods. The letters were W T L.
Bernie put his hand up to his face like he wanted to warm it on a cold winter's day. But then he started to say something into it. But the very moment that Al could start to hear words, the whole area became "Silent"!! And Al could hear those exclamation marks around the Not Sound. He could see Bernie's lips move but no sound was heard. As Bernie pulled his hand away from his face the world became noisy again. Bernie put his hand against the T in the Monogram and the lock popped open. He lifted the lid and pulled out a slim book that looked a lot like one of those wedding registers.
Bernie walked over to Al and held the little book open. "Write your name, your address, your phone number, your cell number, and you email address. Do it in the spaces that I did and when you are finished. place the tip of the pen on the line where you would normally sign it, but wait."
Al followed his instructions and finished with the pen poised to sign his name. Al looked up to an expectant expression on Bernie's face. He was hoping Al would do something a certain way. Al just gave his "I'm Ready" look. Then a little smile.
"State your relationship to me." No hints or additions to the simple bald request.
Al looked down at what Bernie wrote in the book and spoke to that as well as his friend. "Bernard "Bernie" Russo is my best friend. And I pray that I have been a good friend to him. He deserves nothing less."
A ripple of what looked like static discharges spread from the tip of the pen and out along any and all lines of printing and writing on the page. The pages in back sort of struggled for space and separated a bit. Seven spots on Al's body suddenly felt like someone nudged him all in the same direction, but only at those seven points. Al knew they were his body's chakra points. Then a feeling like he was a crystal goblet and someone had tapped the rim.
Al thought, 'Oh My God! I have a chord of music that is mine and mine alone! My body vibrated to it just then.' Just as the reverberations were dying off the tone resurged and without directing it, Al's hand wrote his signature in one fluid motion.
Al looked up at Bernie and his body looked like it had felt the same vibrations Al had. Al put the pen in the little sleeve crafted for it on the cover and handed the book to Bernie. Bernie just nodded with his head towards the middle of the floor. "Just drop it in the center of the Medallion."
As Al dropped it, the book twisted a bit so that it fit an area the same size as the book. Like on a Monopoly board that has spaces for cards, except the book knew where it wanted to be.
Bernie pulled out a thick, round, glass Mirror with a plain silver frame around it's edge. "Al, put your hands in your lap and leave them there for the next few minutes. Whatever I do or ask you to do, please don't touch any of the objects I place on the floor. And just so you know, the next few things are gonna roll or slide along some of the lines in the floor. OK?"
"I can keep my hands to myself. I just hope that I can touch a few things later in the evening."
Bernie's little grin let Al know he got the innuendo and agreed with the sentiment. Bernie set the edge of the mirror on the circle made of purple heart wood. They both sat inside of that circle and Al could see the mirror surface was pointing inward. "Buddy, you just say the best things." He flipped the mirror and it took off like it was alive. The purple heart circle was actually a spiral and the mirror went around three times before it took a wild 60 degree turn and rolled along a triangle that was part of a hexagram on the floor. As it returned to the circle it went around two more times and reached the other triangle's tip. It repeated it's sharp turn performance and when it got to the circle again, it made one circuit and then started spinning like a coin does when you hold it on edge and flick one side. It's path seemed to be random till it started to slow then it wobbled to the center and filled another space in the floor.
Bernie pulled out a small box covered in cloth and held closed by a ribbon with a bone pin through it. He pulled the pin and it was attached to the box by a smaller ribbon. The lid popped open and two silver balls could be seen. Bernie rolled each in his hand as he removed them from the box and they jangled to a different note for the different ways it was rolled. He let them go at the same time and they followed an intricate filigree pattern that wove in and out of the many different geometric designs. They were making a simple duet of a melody as they moved and as they neared the mirror the melody concluded with an elegant resolve. They were only still for a few seconds before they sank half way into the floor.
Bernie reached into the chest and removed a cluster of three inch diameter, clear glass balls. There were twelve balls in the cluster Bernie set on end at the edge of the Medallion. One each, top and bottom and then five pair nestled in between.
The huge hunk of a Librarian held the cluster by one ball on the top and then spun it like a top. The whirling mass of glass started circling the Medallion counter clock wise and as it passed a tip of one particular pentagram, two balls fell off of the glass top. One ball stopped at the tip of the figure, while the other ball in the pair rose above the stationary ball by about seven feet and hung there. Eight more balls flew off in pairs and followed the same actions as the first two, as the whirling mass traveled to each of the pentagrams points. The two remaining balls rolled over to where the silver balls had sunk into the floor and then hovered seven feet above them. Bernie called out the word "LUX" and the hovering balls gave forth a warm bright light.
Bernie's smile was giving off a warm form of illumination as he flashed it at Al. Bernie leaned out of the Medallion's edge and over the chest as he began to address the last object in the chest. "Come on old man, it's your turn to shine." The huge book in Bernie's hands was bound in brown and red leather, with brass fittings on the edges and spine. It looked old but well taken care of. And the last thing Al expected from it was a reply to Bernie's words.
"How very rude! My persona is hardly aged, and as they say, 'The Spirit is willing, but the flesh is completely gone'."
Al was shocked. He knew that voice and the person it belonged to. That was the voice of the older brother of Alta Verde University's Dean of Library sciences; Professor Erin T Largesse. "Dr. Largesse? Dr Warren T Largesse? Is that you?"
"Ah. Alton Clyde Morgan. A pleasure, I'm sure. In response to your question, I could hardly say as I live and breath. I am aware that you went to Dr Largesse's funeral over eleven months ago to celebrate his souls merging with the great beyond."
"Please don't tell me you're back from the dead."
"No. The Soul moves on and does not return until after it merges with the One and then is reborn. But it seems that the Ancient Egyptians had part of it right. You have a Soul and you have a Spirit. Your Soul retains the affect that living life had on it. Your Spirit retains your personality and the events that shaped it. For most, when death finds them, the transmigration of the soul, frees the spirit from their lifeless body and it merges with the One."
"So what happened to you?"
"I dedicated my life to protecting the Alexandria Codex. Essentially a copy of the Library of Alexandria that was hidden and moved long before the library burned at Caesar's hands. I was the most recent Librarian of the Alexandria Codex and when I died my spirit merged with this book and released the spirit of the previous Librarian."
Al pointed at Bernie and sort of asked with his eyes. Bernie smiled and nodded. "Yep I'm the new apprentice Librarian, soon to be Librarian."
"My grandson wasn't as interested in books or the occult as I had hoped and we turned to someone with the passion needed to keep these books safe and out of the wrong hands."
"So what's this little bit of magic we're doing here?"
"Umm" Bernie looked a little uncomfortable right then.
"Your recently enlarged friend wishes to have company of similar size."
"What? Big Bernie wants his housemate supersized?"
Bernie's smile told Al it was more than friendship. "Yes please. You are My best friend. And I want us to be more than just friends."
Al was setting those thoughts in his head and found that they fit very well now. Up till now, Bernie had been a bit too shy about being romantically inclined toward Al. So now the change of attitude fit well with Al's ignited lust for Bernie.
"OK. But how big should I get?"
"Well I'd like you to be close to my size. But what ever you're comfortable with." That smile again got Al thinking big.
"OK, so what do I do? Describe the size I want to be? Or what?"
Bernie put the book down and it slid into place opposite the other book. "Bernie will begin to meditate on the symbols involved with the change. I will invoke the energies needed and you must concentrate on the shape you wish to be."
"Seems simple enough. I got a great example to work from." Bernie's hand went to his head again.
Al smiled and closed his eyes. "OK, I have the image in my head."
Bernie closed his eyes. "And I have the symbols in my minds eye. You may begin, Elder."
"Al, keep your eyes closed and ignore any sensation until we tell you to open your eyes."
"Understood." And Al waited for something weird to happen. And waited. and waited.
Just when he thought nothing would happen, it suddenly got much brighter. Then the sources of the light seemed to be circling around them faster and faster. Then it got so bright he had to squint. And all while keeping an image of the muscle stud he wanted to look like. Just as it got so bright he thought of covering his eyes with his hands, they were plunged into total darkness.
"Whoa. Did I go blind or did the light go out.?"
A hand touched his shoulder and he opened his eyes. the dim light that seeped through the stacks, showed a large figure beside him. "You can stand up now, Al." The hand reaching down didn't look so big, now.
Al got to his feet with a little help from Bernie and his balance was a little uneven. Bernie grabbed him and pulled him to his side. "I got you Al. LUX!" The glass balls were clustered back together again and floating a foot above the mirror. By their light Al could see he got the right height. And with the width of his shoulders being close to Bernie's, that part of it was correct, too.
Al smiled up at Bernie from his six foot eleven height. "Well that's good. You're still the big man here."
Bernie just answered that with a very long kiss.
Al was at least 450 pounds of thick round muscle pulled against Bernie's 600 pounds of firm massive meatiness.
The kiss lasted for quite a while...
To be continued